Kurama's Heart
by Karmira
Summary: Kurama has found someone from his deep past. Struggling with past ghosts he forced himself to forget, he stays away. However, when Hiei tells him that she is being watched by a group of demons and Koenma appears, Kurama is left with no choice. Kurama/OC
1. Chapter 1: Flashes of the Past

**Kurama's Heart**

_a Yu Yu Hakusho fan fiction_

Chapter One: Flashes of the Past

Kurama was running through the trees, flying at a steady pace. The trees scrambled to get out of his way. A leaf cracked in front of his eyes and whirled away, broken, in the wind behind him. He leapt over a branch, skipping into the air, and landed on his feet. Idly, he was aware of his hair breaking free of the tie, fanning out behind him and wrapping around his throat like a tail. He jumped a stream. The scent of roses and moss filled his senses. Still, he ran on, not tiring. He startled a robin. It darted right into his path. Blinking, Kurama spun into a cartwheel, springing above the scared animal. He landed on all fours. The bird vanished and the ground steadied. Kurama chuckled and took off again. Thunder echoed in the distance.

Smirking, Kurama continued to run through the woods, even as rain began to pelt his back, plastering his hair to his head. Thunder cracked above. Eyes slightly narrowed as his surroundings dimmed, Kurama grabbed a vine in his path. Without slowing, he swung into the lower branches of a pine tree. Lightning split above him. Kurama laughed and shook the hair out of his eyes. He jumped to the next tree, barely touched a sapling in its shadow and balanced on a log. Chuckling to himself, the demon spread his arms and spun into the air backwards, the scent of his power pervading him again. The forest lit up.

Once more, Kurama landed on his feet, finally halting his jog in a small clearing. He stared into the gloomy darkness, rain dripping from his bangs.

The thunder grew distant as the mist curled around the demon's legs. A chill breeze wrapped around his throat. Kurama turned.

In the shadows of giant spruce, Youko met his eyes.

Kurama didn't blink. As the molten gaze ripped into his gentle green eyes, his eyes started to burn until they changed into the same golden color. "You should know you can't intimidate me." Youko remained silent. "After all, we are the same, even if I wear a different form now." He lowered his head.

A ripple seized the clearing. Kurama, changed into Youko, flexed his clawed fingers. "Tell me, what message does my former self feel the need to impart in this dream?"

The other fox demon moved from the tree and stepped into the clearing, morphing into his animal form. His transparent tail merged with the twisting mist, which blended with Youko Kurama's shimmering sliver hair. A rose appeared clasped in his jaw. Kurama knelt, holding his hand out for the rose. The fox dropped it into his hand and dispersed in a warm wind.

Kurama stood, twirling the crimson flower in his hand. A single petal fell. Narrowing his eyes slightly, Kurama pricked his finger, dropping blood onto the rose. It pulsed. The mist began to dissolve and Kurama changed back into his present form. Another pulse echoed. Chuckling, Kurama leapt and tossed the rose. A portal opened in front of him, but Youko barred his way.

Kurama landed, still smiling. "Now, now, must you always test me?" he purred. Kurama flicked his rose whip at his feet. "Do we truly have such a merciless part of us?" He paused then dashed forward, spinning the whip.

In the instant before Kurama's whip hit him, a long whip materialized in Youko's hands, barely missing Kurama's face. Kurama skipped to the side and flicked his wrist, causing the whip to swing back at Youko. His former self closed his eyes and wound his whip over Kurama's and underneath. Kurama took a step forward and yanked hard. His whip roped around the red one in Youko's hands. Both of their hands were bleeding.

"You already know the answer to that," Youko called out. He turned and disappeared into the colors of the portal like a reflection, Kurama pulled along by their joined whips.

Kurama landed on the banks of a river near a wood. He stood, blinked, and whirled as a white petal glided past him. Gleaming in a stream of light, a small cherry sapling bloomed. The gentle perfume was hinted in a light fiery scent, his mark. Just as he realized his former self had grown this tree, wind rippled across the banks. The image spun up into the currents.

Something silver flashed amongst the trees. Kurama leapt the river and followed Youko's form. For a while, both demons ran underneath the trees, startling deer from their shaded retreats and stirring small birds to run above them. As one, they both tired of the smooth grass and climbed up into the canopy. A salamander slithered from underneath Kurama's foot. He spun into the free air between the trees, grabbing a vine and hanging there as a bluejay squawked at him. He chuckled and swung into the next branches, jumping once more to the damp earth. There, he halted.

At the foot of a stone wall, Youko waited, looking up. The sun caught his hair, and for a moment, Kurama heard something demonic hum in the air. Before he could register it though, Youko dispersed and his mist wrapped around Kurama. His eyes closed.

...

Kurama awoke under a tree in another forest. Beside him, an open notebook with a drawing of the scenery had been laid out. A book bag with the textbook _Life's Webs: a Biology Handbook for College Students _and an english dictionary leaned against a root.

Kurama let his eyelids close for another moment. Where had Youko taken him this time? He brushed his crimson bangs out of his face. Also, it seemed that Youko wouldn't be showing this memory in one dream. This dream had been only a flash. Opening his verdant eyes to watch the leaves flutter above him, Kurama narrowed his eyes. Not only that, there had been only one very distant clue, as if...

"How long do you plan on laying there soaking in this disgusting afternoon light?" a blunt voice called from above in the branches.

Kurama chuckled as he filed the thought away for another time and place. "And how long do you plan on hiding, Hiei?"

"As long as I feel like it," Hiei grumbled back. There was a moment's silence before the leaves rustled and Hiei landed in the sunlight with a grimace. "That was a long nap. Did the fox in you talk that long?"

"Maybe, maybe not," Kurama replied. He turned to add another cloud and more shadows to the picture. Hiei watched, quiet.

Hiei had picked up the growing amount of inner conversations with Kurama's former self quite quickly after he had discovered him sleeping underneath the trees in Genkai's estate repeatedly. Most of the time, his temporary comrade kept the conversations to himself, but at times, the fox thief imparted some new battle technique. At these times, the two would retreat deeper into Genkai's property and spar, relieving the Jagan user's boredom. There were too few demons wanted by the Spirit Realm or even his collegue, the strict Mukuro.

Finally satisfied with his drawing, Kurama closed his notebook and returned his pencil to its bag, standing up, book bag over his shoulder. He called over to Hiei, "I have a test to study for, so I doubt I will be back here soon."

"Hmmph. See that you aren't. I prefer being alone."

Kurama chuckled under his breath with a slight smile on his face as he hiked back up to the house. That part of Hiei never changed.


	2. Chapter 2: Slow Afternoon

_**First I would like to apologize for taking so long to update, and I am afraid it might continue to be that way for a couple months. My life is chaos right now, and I don't have much time to myself. Even so, I won't stop writing and I hope you continue to follow along. Enjoy the story~~**_

**_Also, I am getting used to using this site's format. You may get a few repeat updates. Sorry. _**

_**Please review or leave a comment if you have time. **_

A special thanks to **BlackMoonWhiteSky, missbotanHakusho, Rokkugoh, **and **Kataline **for favoriting my story. I really appreciate the support and it makes me smile.

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><p><span>Chapter Two: Slow Afternoon<span>

"That will be all for today. Please file your reports in the proper fashion and if you haven't already done so, clean up your lab tables. Do NOT," the professor raised his voice as the students began to shuffle forwards, "forget to put the plants back in the greenhouse. You are now dismissed." The mass began to hurry out of the door. The professor left through another door towards his office.

Kurama rose and gathered his papers before placing them into his green folder. "Minamono! Shuichi, wait!" He sighed, turning to a sandy blonde with freckles, his fellow classmate and lab partner, Saitou Togami.

"Shuichi, please!" Saitou exclaimed, clasping his hands in moment of nerves. The rest of the biology team gathered behind him, eyes wide with hope that his lab partner could be the key to persuading the red-haired genius.

"I already gave you my answer. I do not-"

"Please, for one year, join the team! We only need one more push to make the national level. With you on our side, we can surely-"

Saitou fell silent as Shuichi raised his hand with a simple smile. "I am sorry, but I have no interest in competition." He let his hand fall. "Thank you for the offer, but I must refuse." He gathered his supplies and returned them to his bag. "Now if you will excuse me." Shuichi pushed his chair in and picked up the daisy, walking away.

"But, Shuichi, you are the best." Kaoru added. A few nodded.

"No," Shuichi paused and closed his eyes, "I am not." He placed the plant in its place and turned back to them. "Have more faith in your own abilities. Do not look for it in others if you are the ones who want to succeed. I wish you luck." He left the classroom without looking back.

It was a pleasant late afternoon outside. Shade stretched across the healthy lawn, draping the open area in a patchwork of light and darkness. The leaves danced in the slight breeze and tangled in his red mane. A starling flashed past him. Kurama didn't look up. A red ball bounced over into the sidewalk. He stepped around it. Then, two kids rushed towards him and his steps paused. The girl with pigtails ran forwards with her head over her shoulders as a boy in a polo shirt reached for her. She giggled and rammed into the redhead. Shuichi caught her arm, stopping her fall into the pavement.

"Running that fast can be dangerous." The girl looked up at him with wide brown eyes. He chuckled and smiled. "Are you alright?"

She stumbled out of his grasp, bowing low. "Yes, than- thank you, pretty mister." She grabbed her friend's arm, pulling him into another run.

"Be more careful or you-" The boy bonked a couple. "-will run into someone again," he murmured. The two kids bowed and apologized. Then, the boy grabbed the girl's hand and zigzagged even faster. The couple waved. Kurama watched the children until they vanished behind trees. He chuckled. "Humans never change. They always want to charge ahead." A small genuine smile graced his face.

Kurama stayed on the outskirts of the crowd at the traffic light. Nearby, a man in a business suit flipped the daily newspaper open. Cars buzzed along the road, screeching across the crossing and rumbled into the distance. The light shifted to yellow. A youth leaned in to kiss his girlfriend. Green. Shuichi Minamino moved with the mass. The man continued to read the immediate article until he reached the office building on the other side. Then, he folded it over his arm. Shuichi chuckled and turned down the road.

After an hour walking, the noise of downtown faded as he entered the residential side. A bag of groceries bounced in his hand. Tall saplings blanketed the sidewalk, and the birds' chorus rang out. A few dogs barked, growling in their throats, as he passed then shuffled back into their places. A white cat cleaned itself on a nearby windowsill. In another house, a grey one slid back underneath the curtain into the darkened house. Shuichi reached into his bag for his keys and let himself into the gate of a blue two-story house.

…

The clouds darkened to a burnished orange glow outside his window, casting checkered shadows over his page. Complicated charts lay out on the other side of his desk. Shuichi Minamono pushed his textbook to the side and glanced out at the fiery storm of color. A houseplant reached for his nearest hand, yet it retreated when Shuichi turned back to his worksheets. Taking out another sheet of clean paper, Shuichi jotted down a few sentences. He flipped the page. Eyes roamed over the page before turning to the next one. His right hand flew across the note page.

Shuichi halted. The plant had succeeded in wrapping an elongated leaf around his arm and another in a pot on the floor had snaked a vine tendril around his ankle. He could feel their slight tugging on his demon green energy. He chuckled.

"Now, now," the demon poked the tenacious leaf with his pen, "what would my brother think if he saw you like that?" Kurama focused on gathering his _youki_ back into himself. The plant shuddered. Leaning down, he pulled at the vine. "Come on, back to your pots," he persuaded. The tendril inched back on itself. With a sliver of a smirk on his face, he pushed both back with a thread of power. "You already have more life in you than most of the other houseplants, too, since you are in my room. Enjoy that and let me deal with fewer questions from my little brother. If you don't..." Kurama let his thin threat trail away as both plants curled back to their normal positions. He picked up his pen again.

An couple hours later, he pulled a curtain back to let in the light of the skylight. His desk was clear of his working materials, the pages in red folder and the biology textbook closed and back with the other book in the shelf on the side. Blue twilight blinked back at him from the night sky and a couple walked past his house. A cat yowled in the distance.

Kurama narrowed his eyes and sent his senses outwards. It took only a moment to register his family's life forces. His mother was with a few of her colleagues on a dinner date. His brother was likewise on an outing. Both of their lines were firm. He smiled. Some of his mother's stress had dissipated too.

"You better behave," he called out to the bromeliad on the top shelf of his library. With a bit of crinkling, the leaf flipped back up. Kurama checked the clock. There was time enough for what he had planned. He closed his eyes, time enough for Shuichi to rest and to free Kurama to do some soul searching.

"Alright," he laughed, pinky tickled by the tip of the tropical plant again. Kurama could feel a few of his other plants stretching out. "Go ahead and do as you wish for now, but I will force you back once more later." The energy of his plants flared.

Kurama narrowed his eyes at the door. It swung shut and one long vine slid over to the knob. It wrapped around the doorknob and inched into the workings of the back of the door too as tiny tendrils. Kurama walked over and pushed. The door didn't budge, completely wrapped by invisible plant life. He sent another thread of _youki _to reinforce its strength. A final thread dampened the hallway, dimming the awareness of any intruders, wanted or not.

"Remember what I told you," he called out, before taking a seat on his bed. Large ferns spread over his pillow and smaller life littered his blanket. No doubt even his newest project for school was acting up. Kurama bunched his hand in a tangle of vegetation and closed his eyes. Sinking into meditation, he focused on recreating the scene from the dream earlier in that week.

…

He fell into Youko's memory, waking in a tree and facing the same stone wall as before. Kurama stood. He had succeeded in returning to the place without his former self leading the way, but it remained to be seen how the fox would react to his impulsiveness. He turned, eyes narrowed in preparation for Youko's appearance. A songbird chortled in the trees near him. Calling out its own welcome, a hawk circled overhead. Kurama straightened. There was nothing. The shadows moved over him in a light morning breeze and a walking stick pricked its way across his hand. Kurama remained still.

Youko had never done this before. Once before, Kurama had coerced his former self to show something before the fox had wanted to; however, after a game of hide and seek, he had relented and shown Kurama the technique. Something was different here. Youko had closed himself off. No hint of his emotions ran over the scene. Youko was different here.

Kurama flicked a spider off his wrist, grabbing the nearest branch. It had not been a mistake. This was one of the most potent memories to his former self. Youko had dispersed the memory that afternoon on purpose, and if Kurama hadn't brought the memory out with his own powers, he would not have shown more of it for a long time. Kurama's heart pounded in his ears. He climbed into the next level. Springing, he leapt into the branches above that. This memory didn't hold techniques or glimpses of their thieving exploits. It held more of Youko's, no, their heart.

A green caterpillar, decorated with orange spots and black horns crawled across a branch near Kurama's eyes. He had to wonder if breaking into this memory would shatter some of the last ties separating the two halves; human from the demon, the past from the present, Youko Kurama of the ghost stories from Kurama, a demon who had grown bonds and now watched humans with compassionate eyes.

A flash of silver passed him. Kurama turned, but Youko had left. The glimpse, though, gave him the answer. Neither of them could go back now that he, himself, had recalled the memory.

Kurama's hand found the branch above his head. The wall rose higher than his perch still, and the memory lay behind the stone. His climb wasn't over. Kurama sprang up into the next tree level, landing balanced on the thinning branches. The tree swayed as a stronger wind whispered past.

**"The river is beyond the wall. **

**The town is over the forest, **

**but here, my dear, you will stay. **

**Here in my arms, **

**in my heart. **

**if I die, **

**if I leave. **

**You will stay here.  
>_ <strong>

**The river spins and spins. **

**Above our heads, it moves on. **

**Though we cannot see.**

**It is there, spinning, spinning, **

**connecting us all.**

**I love you.**

**The wind tells you too. "**

The lullaby wrapped around Kurama and his hand stilled. Wind rising around him, he listened. Strangely familiar, the low song resounded deep inside him. The lyrics spoke of loss and love, but it echoed of more. Kurama broke a branch, startling himself out of contemplation, and climbed higher. The singer began a new verse.

**"Here you will stay.**

**Here in my arms, **

**watching the treetops sway,**

**you will stay. **

**I will not let you go. **

**I will not leave,**

**my dear, my loved one,**

**as long as the wind blows."**

Kurama paused once more and listened. As the stanza ended, he chuckled quietly, "I'm afraid, whoever you are, that your trick, clever as it may be, will not work on me." With a white film around his arm, the presence of Youko, he pulled something invisible from the air. His former self withdrew again.

A transparent roped formed in Kurama's hand, attempting to twine around his wrist. More had begun to wrap around his middle, and a few had already knotted around his ankles and knees, tendrils of demon energy. Kurama broke the ropes in a slash of his own _youki. _With the wind, they drifted away back towards the wall, yet as the singer started to hum, they began to spin around and around each other, reforming and arching back towards him. Kurama smirked, momentarily forgetting his inner turmoil, at the challenge presented and materialized his demon energy as a rose.

The ropes seemed to hiss. Kurama narrowed his eyes, letting the rose scent and his own power intensify. He closed his eyes as he felt a small shudder in the spell. "Let's see," the fox thief purred, extending his flower, "how powerful this trick really is." Green eyes dancing, he watched the flimsy ropes braid into stronger ones at his intrusion, the intrusion of a stronger demon. "Rose whip," he whispered and spun into the next tree branches. The ropes surged towards him.

The trap was simple but well formed. Anyone who attempted to climb upwards towards the wall would hear the song. The ropes would then form and wrap around their bodies. The climber would feel his/her limbs grow heavier and eventually would give up the adventure. The clever spell deterred visitors from exploring too far, getting too close to the top of the wall.

Laughing to himself, Kurama leapt again, slicing three threads of _youki _down the middle and ripping two more with his hands. Shuddering, the fragments fell apart, swaying with the wind. He chuckled, landing again. The trap hadn't been built for confrontation but disguise, and with his assault, it should fall apart.

"I almost feel sorry for—"

Eyes widening, Kurama ducked as a chain swung towards his head. Another length headed towards his feet. He narrowed his eyes and jumped. A gust of wind tore at his hair and passed through the great tree. Designed to snap limbs, this curse was going too far. Something smelled rotten. Kurama materialized his whip again and waited. As the chain creaked back towards him, he leapt towards it, wrapping his rose whip around a link. Using the momentum, he yanked, changing its course, and tossed a seed. The chains crashed into each other. Scorch marks spread over a portion of the wall.

Kurama swung from a vine rope, the plant he had grown barely embedded high into the wall. His form snapped with energy and burns marred one of his hands. There had been one more piece to the wall's defenses, spirit energy. That power had twined completely around the _youki_, and it had directed the last murderous assault. Youko's anger overrode Kurama's irritation. What was one of the Spirit Ruler's spawn doing directing demon energy and setting a trap to maim any demons that got past the camouflaged trick of the _youki?_

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><p><em><strong>Some of the mysteries I am developing will be answered in the next two chapters. Also, if all goes well, Kuwabara will make an entrance.<strong>_

_**I hope to have the next chapter up in a couple weeks. **_


	3. Chapter 3: Family and Friends

_**Update status on account with preview**_

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><p><em><strong>I'm sorry that I took longer with this chapter, but I have good news. This story is flowing in my mind almost too fast. The chaos in my life has settled, too. Therefore, I should get my chapters out faster. <strong>_

_**This chapter is longer than the first two and the next chapter may be longer, unless I break it up into two pieces. Bear with it and I hope Kuwabara makes you laugh. **_

_**Thank you to all my readers. Please comment if you have time. I would really like to hear your opinions.**_

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><p><span>Chapter Three: Family and Friends<span>

Buzz intensifying in his ears, Kurama opened his eyes. The room was still. Blood raced through his limbs and the heart thudded against his chest. Closing his eyes once more, it took a few minutes before Kurama registered the original reason for his lapse back into the present. His mother had returned.

Letting a smile slide over his features, Kurama rose from his bed. He unlatched the window and pulled it open. As the breeze drifted through, he closed his eyes and breathed deeply, pulling his demon aura back into himself. He opened his eyes and turned. His plants had resumed their stasis forms and the vines around the door had vanished, leaving it open a crack. Shuichi's smile in place, he left the room.

In the kitchen downstairs, Shiori Minamino leaned over the fridge, shuffling vegetables around. A small box rested on the counter with a strong aroma of spiced beef.

"Is that you, Shuichi?" she called out in a mellow voice as she shifted a cabbage over to the left.

"Yes, Mother," he replied, kneeling down and helping her. He removed the half of a tomato on the top shelf and a quarter of a pepper from the door, setting them on the table. Reaching for the pitcher of tea, Kurama added, "How was your day?"

"Much better than yesterday. The dinner meeting went well, too. You and Kazuya are welcome to the rest of it."

Kurama took out a container of roller omelets. "I'm sure he will be thrilled." He turned around and turned the stove on before moving the wok over the small flame.

His mother poured herself a glass from the pitcher. "How did your studying go?" she inquired. "Did you remember lunch?"

"Mother," Kurama chuckled, spooning out rice from the cooker into a small bowl. "I can take care of myself. Please rest."

It was his mother's turn to laugh in whispering gasps. "You've always been so confident, Shuichi, even before your father left and I got ill." She sat at the low table in the tatami floored living room. "Sometimes I wonder why I worry now." She took a sip. "A mother's perogative, I guess. How are you doing with money for food?"

"Mother," Kurama repeated, chuckling. He grabbed a knife and cut up the tomato, pepper and egg on a cutting board. Turning, he mixed the rice in the wok with a long chopstick. His free hand poured the cubed ingredients on top.

"Alright, alright, I understand when to quit." She sipped at her tea for a few minutes while Kurama continued cooking. He stirred the rice dish for a couple minutes in silence then reached blindly for the pepper and salt, increasing the rate of his mixing. As the house filled with the smells of choice herbs he added, his mother spoke up again, "Where is your brother?"

"At a karaoke bar down the street," Kurama responded, switching the heat off. "He should be back within the hour." He poured his dinner into the small bowl.

"You should go along with him sometimes."

Kurama sat down cross-legged with his bowl and chopsticks in one hand and his glass in another. "I'm quite happy, mother, with staying behind, and it lets Kazuya win the games more often."

She smiled. "You are so generous."

"I doubt it is that. I merely have more studies than him at the moment.

"You're just saying that."

"Well, perhaps," Kurama murmured, pausing in his dinner, "I prefer to spend my company with those who have a chance to beat me." He grinned wider and took another bite of the fried rice.

His mother leaned on her hand to look at him closely. She sighed, "You always have a reason, dear. Always thinking."

_More than you know, _Kurama elaborated quietly before saying, "It is who I am, mother."

"I know, and your generosity is a part of you, too."

"Maybe," he said with another ambiguous smile.

She smiled quietly. "Thoughtful yet distant, Shuichi, I wonder how you will fall in love."

Kurama choked on his juice. "What?" he croaked.

"I said- Wait, Shuichi, you seem surprised." Shiori Minamino lost her glazed expression and focused on her eldest son. "Have I touched on something you meant to keep secret?"

Heart pumping in his ears, Kurama regained his composure, sipping lightly from his glass. "If you are referring to a girlfriend, no, I am still single. You would be the first person I told if that changed."

"You startled when I mentioned that," she pushed.

Kurama bit out a short chuckle. "I was merely surprised by this topic again so soon after the last time." He smiled. "I have too much work to do to think about girls right now." Picking up his dishes and his mother's empty glass, he rose. "I need to study for a little longer. Good night, mother." She nodded and echoed him.

. . . . . .

As soon as he locked his door again, Kurama settled back onto his bed and leaned his head against his hands. His mother phrased personal questions on many nights when neither his step father or step brother were home, more so now that he was a university student and still single; however, he, Youko Kurama, had never let any of them get to him. Until now, he would smile and give her a simple negative response. Until now. Kurama glanced out the window. Before he could even register it, his equilibrium had broken tonight. His heart had clenched for some unknown reason, and he had made quite a scene in front of his human mother. It wasn't normal.

"Perhaps," he stated quietly in the darkness, "I am still shaky from my meditation," he reasoned aloud. It had happened before.

. . . . . .

The shrill ringing of his cellphone broke Kurama's musing. It vibrated from his jeans pocket and continued ringing when the fox ignored it. Sitting up, he fished it out and flipped it open. The caller ID flashed Kuwabara across his screen. Chuckling, he flipped it open. "Hello?"

His gruff teammate's voice sounded out, "Oh, Kurama, glad I caught you. For a moment there, I thought it might be too late in the month, you know with tests and projects and such. How're you doing?"

"I'm fine, Kuwabara. You still need to remember to call me Shuichi."

"Oh, yeah, sorry, I forgot."

Kurama chuckled and smiled. "You always do."

Kuwabara's nervous laugh stumbled out. "Heh eheh. I'll try to remember next time, even if am in my apartment." Kurama could imagine him scratching the back of his neck as phone static filled his ear for a moment. It quieted. "Well, here, look. Do you have time to come by the diner near the university tomorrow? I need your assistance."

Kurama shook his head slowly. "Another gift for Yukina? I hope someday you can decide on your own."

That was a bit harsh. Kuwabara began these searches on his own. He didn't drag him to stores to examine pretty pieces of jewelry or haggle over prices of keepsakes in the markets and net. Only at the end did he ask for Kurama's help, after purchasing two or three items. Then, they sat down somewhere, usually the diner, and he discussed the value of each item. Kurama offered his own opinion.

This had started to be regular, not an occasional, favor of Kurama's for his big friend after Kuwabara had shown up at his house with a huge lump on his forehead from his sister, Shizuru. Kuwabara had said that Shizuru had hit him over the head when he had asked her for advice, only the third time that month, probably screaming something about being more manly and taking care of it himself at the same time. Puffing himself up, Kuwabara straightened and declared that everything being perfect for Yukina was more important, before folding his fingers and begging for the fox demon's opinion.

Furthermore, Kurama hadn't managed to find a way to say no without embarrassing consequences yet and most of the time, nowadays, he went along with the anxious man. He didn't know what happened to the gifts rejected, though he could imagine Kuwabara keeping a stash for emergencies, in case he forgot her birthday or one of the many days the ice demon deemed something important or sweet.

This night's discussion wasn't new either.

"I can," Kuwabara explained loudly over the phone. "Really I can. It's just," Kuwabara lowered his voice, "my choices don't always meet with the brother's approval."

Highly amused, Kurama stated, "Kuwabara, I assure you he doesn't listen in on your telephone calls." _ And if he was, we wouldn't know it_, Kurama thought silently. "He has better things to with his time," he said aloud.

"Uh... well, yeah... " Kuwabara mumbled under his breath, "I know that... But-"

Kurama cut him off. "Except for occasional training, he doesn't live to give you pain. He hasn't killed you, either. Maybe, Kuwabara, you have his tacit approval."

"Gee, you think so? I mean, I don't know... Hiei has never-"

Chuckling to himself, Kurama continued baiting the same argument as other nights while selecting one of his books. "Have you ever considered that it's your uncertainty and hesitation that makes Hiei stay quiet about Yukina and yourself?" he prompted, opening the text. "Be more confident."

"I'll try..." the big man's voice dragged out, pouting.

"You love Yukina, right?" Kurama added, trying a different angle.

"Of course I do!" Kuwabara shouted across the line. "She's beautiful, no, GORGEOUS! She's sweet. She always knows what I want. And she's -"

"You're certain about that," Kurama broke in again, stopping the flood.

"Of course I am. But Hiei..." he trailed off again. "If he's my teammate in a battle, I know I can count on him, but when it is about Yukina, he ... I can't explain it and thinking like this makes my head hurt."

Kurama turned a page. "What time do you want to meet at the diner?"

"Umm... about 2?"

"2:30 or later, Kuwabara. My class doesn't end until 2:20."

"Okay. That will work. Thanks, Kurama, you're a great friend." Kuwabara hung up.

Kurama glanced at the time with slight smirk. No doubt, if Hiei had heard that, he would have rolled his eyes and muttered that the fox's attempts at explaining were a lost cause. Some things never changed and Kuwabara's 'idiocy' was one of them.

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><p><em>I am already working on the next chapter as well as a battle sequence further along. Hopefully, I do stick by my estimate of a couple of weeks.<em>


	4. Chapter 4: Reflections

_First, I need to send out some cries of gratitude. _

_**Princess-Saiyuri13**, I was thrilled to receive your comment. I went back and rewatched a few episodes of Yu Yu Hakusho to double check on my characterization, but it was awesome that you thought I was doing a great job without that fun research. Keep reading and reviewing._

_A HUGE thank you to those who have added this story to your alerts or even better, favorited this story since it slowed down, **Raymonde, jazzmonkey, CrimsonRosen, Aiels, OscarMerrinoz96, The Wolf and the Rose,** and **SolitaryNyght. **_

_I would still be wrestling with this chapter if you hadn't encouraged me like that. Thank you!_

* * *

><p><span>Chapter 4: Reflections<span>

Guards were cursing them on the other side of the wall as the group of thieves fled. Shrill whistles followed them into the night air. Tripping, one member crashed to the ground. The footsteps thundered closer. Someone hoisted the fallen thief up. Leaning on each other, they stumbled around the shadowy bend behind him. The group continued to run. Youko paused at another turn in the temple. Running his hands over the walls, he smirked at the cries and foolish misgivings hissed behind him.

"I told you it was too risky, Youko."

"There were too many guards for our usual operation."

"If we die, I swear -"

Youko Kurama chuckled as he continued his perusal, his reply smooth, nonchalant, "Who said you were going to die?"

"We can't just hide in the corridors forever. Someone will look and find us. Some of us aren't - "

"No, some of you aren't fighters," Youko echoed, turning around, his golden eyes narrowed and sharp. "You wouldn't survive if we were caught." He held up a tiny silver seedling, shaping itself into a key. Without breaking eye contact, he pressed his organic key behind him. The wall shuddered and fell in, revealing a flight of stairs and light ahead. He turned around once more. "This will lead outside the fortress, and you wouldn't have found it without me." Silence. "Let's go."

. . . . . . . . .

Kurama turned in his sleep and another memory spilled forth.

. . . . . . . . .

Eyes on the shadow of the new moon, Youko Kurama listened as the argument below escalated. The gang of thieves had begun a discussion on a probable next target. One side wanted a more remote destination with little chance of strong opposition, but the other side desired challenge. Confident from the small smuggles, hot blood called out for a true test of their skills. Youko was silent, still, as reason dissolved into anger and animal instincts.

The shrill cry of metal echoed in his ears as the glint of knives and claws winked with the far away stars. Flesh tore. Curses flew through the night. Already heavy with blood, humming youki filled the saturated air. The fox allowed a silver of a smirk to form.

A wave of energy snuffed the tension out. Youko gazed down. His present second-in-command seized the nearest blade and kicked another brawler in the gut. He flung the blade aside, cuffing the remaining members of both parties. Last, he let out a scathing order. The group dispersed. Hand still bleeding, the demon spun around.

Their eyes met and held. As if alone, silent questions passed through their sharp gazes. Why had Youko Kurama, the leader, let the fight continue after first blood? Would he had waited for a death? Silence stretched on as the currents of vermillion clashed with solid gold. The gold did not waver.

. . . . . . . . .

Kurama awoke once more.

Eyes flickering open, he lay still as consciousness pushed further into the front of his mind. An airy whirr or noise filled his ears, and a pressure sat on his eyes. Sitting up, Kurama glanced at the alarm clock across the room on his desk. 4:19 pulsed at him, sliding from dark to transparent to painful neon red. Putting a hand between his eyes, the fox blinked away golden eyes and the residual hum of the latent _youk_i. The pressure faded. Sighing, Kurama let his head fall back against the wall.

Every few weeks, Youko Kurama's memories and knowledge filled his time of actual rest, and each experience left his mind alert. Energy building around him as old instincts awakened. Patient and rested on even a couple hours of sleep, the fox would wait the adrenaline rush with a calm mind.

Kurama's eyes darkened, turning glassy, as he recalled the second memory, the harsh vermillion eyes. It had seemed like the demon had been accusing him, anger roused for an unjust action. It didn't fit.

_"Hiei cannot prepare you for the ruthlessness of these fights. His honor makes him go easy on you. I will not." _

As Kurama had told Kuwabara before the training for the Dark Tournament years ago, Kurama might have been a thief in his past life, but he was brutal. Simple thievery did not bring grisly legends to life, and even trapped in a human body, he would do anything to fulfill his goals. If death was the only way, he would kill, and he had. He was a demon from a cruel world in a human's skin.

This knowledge was nothing new to him.

Why then had this demon condemned Youko for not interfering?

Would Youko Kurama, decades before, have lowered himself to such a task?

Kurama found no answer and reluctantly returned to sleep. Again, memories and analysis clashed in his dreams.

. . . . . . . . .

Kurama ran down the corridor of another keep and turned towards the right, ignoring the left side. He knew the way, recalled the correct route from his past life, and jogged onwards. A small weight, a sack, bumped against his thigh. His mind pulled up the image of a single ornate bracelet. Gold and sliver braids, touched with diamond dust, wrapped around a single red gem, which boiled with demonic energy. It was a personal acquisition. However, before Kurama could recall more about the item, Youko's presence pushed him around the corner. Kurama, now the observer, watched as Youko pressed a brick into the wall and disappeared up the revealed secret passage. Kurama followed.

The din of guards sounding the alarm buzzed in their ears as they entered another corridor, this time on the ground level, Kurama realized. Before long, a handful of figures appeared from the adjoining passageways.

The thieves paused, looking at each other, and then Youko spun around. As the whistles drew closer, he smiled. Kurama chuckled as the wave of pleasure from a close chase merged within himself and let his past self lead. The untrained sprints of a few of the recruits thudded in his ears, a sound that could spell doom for another group; however, it would do nothing of the sort for him.

Ducking a trellis of white trumpet vine, the foxes emerged in a twilight courtyard. Behind them, the thieves spread out. Keen ears picked up the creaking of the portcullis inching downwards on other side of the courtyard doors. Youko's presence left.

"Split up," Kurama yelled, taking up the role. "Those who are quick on their feet use the main road. The rest, climb the walls." He whirled around and pointed at smaller side doors. "Take the treasure and return to the rendezvous point. I will be there after I deal with the guards." As he knew they would, the thieves scattered. No one stayed behind.

Youko flowed over him and Kurama opened his mind to memory once again. A sensation like rippling water overcame his eyes and mind, shutting out the next few moments. When Kurama opened his eyes, he chuckled at the half circle around himself. Youko's thoughts spilled in.

The fox thief chuckled, deeper in this throat, at the few smirks of confidence around him. _Really, _Youko's voice purred in their mind, _they thought a dozen men would be enough to capture me? _Just as Kurama had noticed a few telltale cuts from his whip across the faces of a couple guards, sudden sheer fury cut Kurama's self off.

The first guards charged.

Youko Kurama plunged his _youki_ into the potent soil around himself, weaving the natural health into a torrent of demonic energy, and leapt into the air. A sword rang out into the empty space, just as the ground erupted. Blood saturated the air. Behind, Youko tilted his head at the mutated plant conjured. A gaping maw of long teeth dripped poison. Rising higher on its crimson stalk, it swayed in time with the terrified heartbeats of the enemies. Youko smirked, eyes gleaming.

A drop slid down Kurama's neck as he recognized the death tree.

Youko Kurama swung his arm down and the plant surged forward, snapping at the nearest demon. The second head latched onto the arm. Blood cascading over the garden, Youko tossed his head back and laughed as low-level demons scurried away. Pools of poison hissed near the harmless ponds.

The slaughter continued.

A tendril coated in the blood of his twitching victims slithered over Youko's free hand, leaving a thick trail of crimson over his beautiful skin. Slowly, the wrathful demon brought a hand up and licked, eyes shimmering gold. He met Kurama's narrowed ones.

A single thought leapt between them. "_Now you know." _ As Kurama's mind faded from the dream, distinct disdain echoed into his waking thoughts.

. . . . . . . . . .

Kurama awoke, gasping. Sweat beading his brows, Kurama heaved in a breath for his starving lungs. He knew what he had seen and experienced, but he couldn't explain it. Something had been wrong, very wrong. Kurama shut his eyes. What was it? What had Youko been trying to impart?

"Shuuichi!"

Kurama started and latched onto his _youki, _forming his trademark rose.

"I'm off to work. Please come down and have some breakfast before you leave for your exam."

Shuuichi blinked, breaking the focus, and closed his eyes. It was only his mother. He stood up off his bed and opened the curtain, flooding the room with early morning light. He pushed the window open. Airy choruses of birds rippled against his ears. He sighed.

Shuuichi Minamino had an exam today, one he was well prepared to take and surpass. That was what mattered now.

Still, he had almost let breakfast slide.

Whatever had happened in this dream had shaken him enough to break his routine.

Shuuichi chuckled. Only momentarily. He would be fine.

What was in the past was the past.

Even if it left him trembling.

* * *

><p><em>*bows* I am so sorry that this chapter took forever and a day to get to you guys. With all the information and the flashbackdream work, it was really difficult to work out on paper. I had one of the biggest writing blocks because I was stressing and trying to force it, too. I couldn't write on anything. _

_Well, it is broken now. I have already started on the next chapter and some ideas for other stories, fan fiction and my own, are flowing freely as well. _

_I hope, I hope, that I will be able to maintain a more consistent update schedule for you from now on. _

_**Please review and tell me if you like how I handled this flow of consciences. **  
><em>


	5. Chapter 5: The Final Piece

_Thank you for waiting patiently. I apologize for not updating in a long time. _

_Thank you to my anonymous reviewer in December. Saying that you devoured it in half an hour is one of the best compliments you can give me. I love it when the story does that for my readers~ _

_And thanks again to __**CrimsonRosen**__, I hope the flow of consciousness continued to flow right in this chapter. It gave me some trouble especially in the end. _

_To__** FavoriteCharacter, THEaWESOMEkOALA, Littledrummergirl44278, **__and __**Keyagi, **__thank you for favoriting this story when I seemed to forget about it. __**middlekertz **__and __**AprylChaotic**__, I was really glad to have your support by subscribing and waiting. _

_My birthday was really special this year. I was added to someone's favorite authors for the first time on that day! A HUGE thank you to you **hailey . duran . 9**__**. **_

_To anyone else following and reading, thank you and keep reading. Reviews are welcome and highly appreciated. Have a wonderful new year ^^_

_This is a link to a video tribute to Kurama that is very fitting for my story. Kurama's Heart: Come Clean - A Kurama Tribute (Not mine) _

_(YouTube) watch?v=FN_by4cxbLA_

_On to the story . . . _

Chapter Five: The Final Piece 

_Waves of heat and acidic blood washed over him, drenching the scene in a red haze as the chilling laughter echoed out. Silver hair dancing in the wind of the swaying predatory plants, Youko's eyes fixed on him. The golden eyes burned alight with pleasure and both hands were dripping crimson. _

_"Now you know."_

Shuichi started, dropping his pencil. Its rolling across his desk onto the tile floor merged with the soft scraping of dozens of pencils and the more distinct scratching of a few pens. Behind him, a clock ticked. The professor turned a page in his book. Shuichi sighed and look down at his test booklet. The sinuous red lines on the graph stayed firm, not sending him into another relapse as the sight of red had done twice in the enforced silence, once just beforehand.

Kurama closed his eyes. _What is past is in the past_, he repeated slowly, as a mantra to himself. The clock hand moved with a pronounced click. _It is not a part of my life now, no matter how prominent in my mind. _Opening his eyes and picking up his pencil, Shuichi perused the diagram one more time before turning the page. He read the instructions and began his preliminary calculations. His slight smile resurfaced.

_The crimson stalk swayed with lethal intent. _

Kurama turned back to the questions.

_Another guard screamed as a head clamped on his leg and tossed him into the air, blood splashing the walls _

Blinking, Kurama traced the slithering line and noted the axis' key one more time before answering.

_The warm dampness of blood falling onto his cheek seemed to calm his rage momentarily. _

Kurama flipped the page, pencil moving to hover over a paragraph. Time slowed. Shuichi checked off the answer and moved onto the page of matching. Quick, precise letters filled the spaces in between. Another page turned.

"15 minutes remaining, class."

The pencil snapped!

A few distracted curses and a dozen groans filtered through his ears, yet Kurama didn't react further. The bottom half of his pencil rolled down the aisle. Pulsing pounding, Kurama stared at a groove in his desk, a drop of sweat slipping down his throat. Someone waved a page in the air.

Kurama sighed. It would be the first time he hadn't finished a test by this point, but there was nothing he could do about it. Taking a new pencil from his bag, Kurama's eyes gleamed. Bundling his _youki_ into a tight ball deep in the back of his mind, he pushed all stray thoughts aside, locking that part of himself down. Only logic and action remained. Narrowing his eyes, Kurama glanced down at the insignificant test, counting the remaining pages and dividing the time available. 12 minutes.

Such measures shouldn't be necessary. He did not have the luxury to wonder why it had. His pencil flew across the page.

Shuichi Minamino handed his test in with two minutes to spare on the clock.

...

As he walked into the greenhouse bordering the classroom, many of his classmates there looked up, heads jerking towards the creaking door before returning to their present tasks. However, a few stared at him longer. Kurama watched as the gears turned in their heads, as recognition flashed in their eyes, and as questions started forming. Blinking, he let the door close behind him, the perfect appearance of a relaxed student, and strode deeper into the room.

"It must have been a difficult exam if Minamino just finished," someone whispered as he passed.

"You're right. He always finishes before us."

"Before the first warning as well."

"He seems alright. Perhaps he was just slow."

"Minamino is never slow," another student, one of the Biology team, countered, fiercely.

Shuichi chuckled.

"B-but I," a girl stuttered and paused. Dropping her voice, she said, "I thought I understood this section better than the others. Does that mean I really flunked it?"

"I don't know. I mean... "

"Perhaps we really should consider Professor Mikawa's only extra credit opportunity."

Kurama ignored the rest of the discussion. Lifting a pot from its fellows, he checked the leaves, hands steady and gentle, gossip fading into the back of his mind, as he mused over the puzzle in his mind. With his emotions closed off, that was all the dream was. He set the pot back down amongst his fellows, tracing the leaves and pulling stray _youki_ threads from the signature of green life.

Why had Youko been intent on killing all of those guards? He hadn't let one escape, no cry of mercy to prevail for long. He did not leave after striking fear into their hearts to remind them of his prowess. He had engineered the perfect bloodbath. There had been no purpose, and Kurama highly doubted that he had acted thus because they stood in his way. Reaching into his vast pools of energy, the master thief's response to mere guards had been a vicious, complete slaughter, nothing else. Why?

Kurama lifted a second pot, tipping the plant upside down, resting the top carefully between his fingers as he checked the roots. He pried a few clusters apart. Free of his emotions, Kurama could think of many reasons for such brutal actions, yet none of them fit.

Youko showed little of his feelings. Any reactions he buried deep within himself. Anger, if he showed any, was a deliberate lightning-quick kill. That was it. Much like himself. He set the pot down.

"Um... Minamino...san?" Kurama opened his eyes. "Are you alright?"

Kurama turned. Leaning against a propped up table, he stretched his hand out the window crack and tangled his hand in the grass by the window, pulling his calm from their energy. "Yes, thank you," he murmured in his normal voice. "I am."

The slim girl clutched a gym bag closer to her body. "That's good." She fidgeted with the strap of the bag for a few seconds. "Also, I want to speak to you... about something." She shuffled her feet against the dirt floor but didn't speak up further. Her high ponytail waved in the breeze coming in from the skylight.

He smiled and pushed away from his perch, walking over to her side. "What is it?" he asked softly. "You don't have to be so shy, Iwara-san. It can't be too difficult to talk about."

"Um.. um," Sayako Iwara fiddled with her skirt. Kurama, in the facade of Shuichi, her beloved classmate, waited, patiently. A blush grew over her cheeks. "Would you like to have coffee this afternoon?" she blurted. "I want to thank you for all your help and maybe we could get to know each other better... if you want." Her face flushed further and her wide hazel eyes darted back to the ground.

Even if it was a cute reaction, it didn't matter.

Closing his eyes for a moment, Shuichi stepped closer to discourage eavesdroppers. He touched the girl's shoulder, looking into her startled eyes. "I'm sorry, Iwara-san," he murmured gently, "I am happy that you've found someone to like, but I can't respond." Her lips formed to say something else but Kurama continued on. "It would have been better for you if I had said something while tutoring you in chemistry."

"There's someone else?"

Kurama chuckled quietly. "No, but it doesn't change my decision. Please find someone else to treasure you."

She nodded slowly. "I understand." She looked up, eyes brightening. "If you change your mind-"

"-I'll tell you," Kurama finished. He wouldn't. He never did. He smiled gently. "I will see you next Tuesday for our session unless you need more time."

The fox stepped back as she walked away, back to her little knot of friends.

The whispers flew towards him less than a few minutes afterwards.

"I told you. Minamino is happier on his own."

"It has nothing to do with you, Iwara-chan. You're still cute."

"I know, but I wanted... "

Someone snickered. "He is this school's most eligible bachelor. He's supposed to stand out."

"And refuse most girls."

"All girls so far." A couple of the students laughed.

"if you were hoping that the test had softened him, you were sorely mistaken," a boy teased Iwara. She sputtered and a couple girls hurried to her defense.

Kurama glanced out the window, hand settling back into the soil.

...

Kurama's mind remained occupied for the rest of the day, though he doubted few realized as he exchanged his routine greetings and answered the few questions the teachers directed his way. Inside, he continued to wonder what pushed Youko, what his last words meant, if they meant anything.

Kurama's brow furrowed. What piece was he missing? Why did his past self seem to believe that those words would mean something to him with only the bloody scene and them to go on? Was it something he, the demon in a human's world, understand better than the fox thief part would?

Kurama paused.

Something he would see better than his fox self? He closed his eyes, recalling the last moments. _Youko stood, his long sliver hair gleaming and trailing behind him like cold impenetrable winter mist in the breeze, as blood rained down on him from the swaying monster plants in his control. The gold eyes met his. _

_"Now, you know." _

Of course.

Kurama set his book down on his lap as the truth struck him. Youko had met his horrified eyes, accepting his condemnation; he had not turned away. The fox knew how horrible the slaughter had been, how useless; although he had seemed to be orchestrating a systematic deathtrap, it had been deeper than that. HIs hand clenched. Much more disturbing.

Youko Kurama had lost himself and hadn't cared to stop it. Something drastic had driven him over to the other side. Youko's glee had echoed in his mind, pounded against his skull. It was more than just overwhelming fury. Youko had let that rage dictate his actions, fuel his brimming youki, give him pleasure. Strategy, logic, distance, all of those characteristics had been replaced. Raw, unrestrained emotion had been set loose and governed his mind.

"Now you know."

Yes, Kurama acknowledged, another drop of sweat sliding past his brow, he did.

* * *

><p><em>I've decided to break up the original chapter outline into two parts. This first part is already 5 pages and the dream scene coming up is going to be an important one. I want to give you all, my faithful readers, a piece to read now, too. After that chapter, hopefully Kurama and Youko let someone else join their stage as I planned earlier.<em>

_Kurama: *chuckles* _

_Youko: *ignores last comment completely* Write faster._

_On another note, I realize now that I have been going between two different spellings for Kurama's human name. I apologize and plan on sticking with the version on wiki, Shuichi Minamino. _

* * *

><p><em>For more information on this story and others, as well as updating information, check my profile. It will be updated often. My Late New Years present is a preview of the first battle scene between Kurama and Hiei. You'll have to wait for the reason. Also, I will be unleashing some of my other synopses for other plot bunnies up there. <em>


	6. Chapter 6: Return to the Dream

_I'm sorry for the long wait. It has been an extremely busy time for me at work. In fact, it only just calmed down this week. From the beginning of the summer onwards, we went from busy to overtime. It's just been soo hectic and stressful. _

_On top of that, for the longest time, the finesse of certain details kept bogging me down, so I decided to make updating at least two of my fan fictions as one of the NaNoWriMo goals for this year. It worked and I now have a chapter to share. It's long, but I am really proud of it. _

_A special thank you goes to all of you whom favorited my story, even when it's been nearly a year since my last update, __**CrashingUpward, BlackWingsHasMyAngel, **__and my new followers, __**Chibisensei110787, Shush Love, Rynnie356, **__and __**YourrrsTruly.**_

_To __**yugiyukiyuseiyuma**__ and __**im ur misconception, **__I'm honored to be among your favorite authors. _

_All the small notices really brightened my days during the busy seasons here. _

_Enjoy the long chapter. It's over 8 pages long, and Youko even let someone else start it besides himself. ^^  
><em>

_Youko: *scoffs* I did not let him start. He barged in. _

_Kurama: *chuckles* It's a good change of pace from what we have for them. _

_Anyways, I hope you like the chapter. I don't' own Yu Yu Hakusho at all, but I hope you like the twists that I hint at to its world here._

* * *

><p><span>Chapter 6: Return to the Dream<span>

As a smashed pop can hit the trashcan, the loud clanging echoed across the hall, Two girls eating bentos on a far bench paused and looked up. Kuwabara winced.

"Sorry, he called out in his gravelly voice, rubbing the back of his orange head with a goofy grin.

He pulled out a couple more coins from the pocket of the grey suit he was wearing and put them in the vending machine, pushing a button. Leaning over after the beat, he pulled out the second coke. Kuwabara popped the lid yet hesitated when he realized the two were still looking at him, one frowning.

"Really," he stated, "a guy's got to have fuel," he placed his finger over his lips, "but I'll try to be more quiet next time," he whispered hoarsely. Reaching above the machine, he retrieved the wrapped deli sandwich.

The girls had begun to talk again. Kuwabara let out a sigh of relief. "I'm getting out of here."

Finding a side door and no one around, he kicked it open.

...

Finally outside on a bench on the plaza, Kuwabara closed his eyes and took a big breath. "Man," he breathed, "that was a long meeting." He pulled at collar of his white shirt, tugging the neon green tie loose. "I've got kinks in my neck and I wasn't even under a car this time," he further exclaimed. The big man glanced at his sports watch. "My normal lunch hour has come and gone, too." A moment later, Kuwabara made a face and slapped a hand to his forehead.

"That means I missed Kurama and the lovely hot chicken sandwich special at the diner this week. Oh no..." He let out a loud moan of agony, running his hand further up, messing up the carefully gelled hair, as he rocked back and forth on his shoes.

Sighing, Kuwabara stopped. With a grimace, he held up the small package in his left hand. "This isn't going to be enough."

He glanced around the buildings, picking out the food stands still around. "Perhaps a takoyaki to go with it?" The orange-haired kid stepped forward before his body went rigid with another realization. He fell back onto the bench.

"That _also _means I have to choose Yukina's gift tonight on my own." He blinked then leaned back on his heels, hand going to his chin, eyebrows furrowing. "Hmmmmm..."

The phone vibration startled him back into reality.

"I'll figure it out somehow." Digging into his pants pocket, Kuwabara muttered under his breath, "Where, oh where..." He switched pockets then paused. "Oh yeah!" he blurted out loud, "it doesn't go there. Doesn't look good. So it's in-" Kuwabara pulled open his jakect and fumbled with the side. "Where is that hidden pocket. Somewhere around here... Aha!"

Holding the shuddering phone aloft, the big man grinned. "Got ya." He glanced at the caller ID. "Woops, Kurama called during the meeting. I should have called him before I left. Oh well." Shrugging and flipping the phone open, he typed in the pass code. Kurama's voicemail came through.

"Kuwabara, it's me, Shuichi. I'm afraid I have to cancel our reunion in an hour and half. I hope you get this message in time..."

"Didn't but it's not a problem," Kuwabara mumbled.

"... I'm afraid I underestimated the exam today and should put more hours into studying. ..."

"Woah... Kurama even.. "Kuwabara wince at another detail, "I'm glad I didn't try to get in."

The message continued.

"... If you still wish to meet before next week, the practical portion of the test will take place in the morning two days from now. Therefore, I will be free that afternoon or evening. "

"Two days... that means Friday which is pool night with Yuusuke. Hmmm..."

"I apologize again for changing my plans this abruptly, but it is imperative that I do this. It is the inevitable course of action when the material turns out to be on a more difficult level than previously anticipated. Farewell."

With no more messages, Kuwabara turned the voicemail off. "As I thought, my match with Yuusuke is still on. He hasn't had the guts to miss it since turning tail last time." _(Never mind the fact that he'd seemed a bit sick on the phone). _"The question now is whether I invite Kurama there as well or ask one of the guys to cover for me at another time?"

Once more he hummed in thought.

Suddenly, an ecstatic grin lit his face. "That's right," he called out, fisting his hand, "I will. That way Yuusuke has no choice but to give his opinion on my gifts to Yukina. It's perfect." He paused. "But wait a minute, I'm giving Yukina the present this evening... Hmmmm..."

"I'LL JUST GIVE HER ANOTHER!" he hollered. A couple passerbys looked his way with strange expressions. Kuwabara grinned. "Hi there. I have the best girlfriend in the whole world and her name's Yukina," he rambled, grin split over his whole face. "She's so amazing I don't even need a reason to buy her something. How many of you can boast the same?" he dared, completely unaware that his audience had quit paying attention.

He snickered. "Alright then, I need to hurry to my apartment and stalk eBay. Buy a dinner at the convenience store. Oh," he pulled out his phone again, "I should call Kurama first. The plan's dead if he doesn't come." Kuwabara dialed the number.

The phone clicked. Kurama's voiceover echoed out. "You've reached Shuichi Minamino. Leave a message after the tone and I will call you back as soon as I am able. Bye." Another click.

Kuwabara closed his phone. "That's strange. He changed his message and it's shorter, maybe too short for someone like him. Is he that anxious about this exam? Or is it..."

Following a feeling in his gut, he made the call again and made to listen much more closely.

Just as it rang.

Starting, Kuwabara nearly dropped his phone. Pushing the answer button in a hurry and stumbling over his feet in surprise, he, nonetheless, didn't lose connection. "Hello?" he breathed, cautiously.

A moment later, his whole face lit up. "Yukina! You called!"

Kuwabara took off down the road, skipping and speaking in a loud voice, his face split in a childlike smile of joy, completely oblivious to the many looks directed his way as he leapt past people in his business suit.

...

Meanwhile, at the Minamino house, Shuichi lay on his bed, gazing up at the ceiling. A strong breeze blew in from the window, tugging on his hair and turning the pages of the calendar on his desk. The red head didn't stir, even after a gust blew his homework off the desk onto the floor. Emerald eyes glassy, he continued staring into space, mind somewhere else.

Now he knew. He knew why Youko Kurama had been a calculating manipulative thief and master strategist, why he caused nightmares, no romantic legends, like many of the kitsune in human mythology.

Kurama knew he had certain skills within him, talents that gave even seasoned mercenaries a reason to pause before challenging him. To kill. Destroy on instinct, leaving nothing behind. Yet, it was more, deeper. The ability to take the knowledge of weaknesses or strengths and completely break his opponent. When his life hung in the balance, Kurama knew how to bury everything, could even take a naive classmate's soul or lead a child to destruction, all through cold, hard facts. For Kurama, these actions could be as simple as breathing.

All demons understood the rules of the natural world, survival of the fittest. Hiei's code weighed in with his sheer power. Kurama, on the other hand, had warned many, beginning with the soul eater up to Kuwabara, of his brutality ahead of time for a reason.

Anger or fear deepened the depths of his existing cold logic, which governed all of his battles.

There were no exceptions.

Even when Karasu had plotted his painful demise, and Kurama had felt burning hatred, he had looked for a way to defeat the demon's speed using his existing repertoire. He had experimented with the potion to assure himself of victory. His tenacity of analysis had been the key, not any emotions. A careless slip of the tongue wouldn't spell a fiery doom as it had with Hiei when his pride had been threatened. His will to protect others and live did not rival Kuwabara's, and like Hiei, he could not be called a solider of good, as Yuusuke was, even now reborn as a demon. After living with his human family and coming to respect Yuusuke's and his companions, he did feel compassion and recognized evil; however, in the end, his distance and ability to take people apart kept him alive. It was a cold fact and a brutal truth.

And he now knew why it had always been so, for as long as he could remember.

Something had happened long ago, setting Youko's emotions loose, to the point where the fine line between honor and slaughter, survival and cruelty, had been lost. The result had been what Kurama had witnessed in that memory, a ruthless bloodbath, where Youko destroyed all and everything against him because he could. Realizing the price of emotional power in himself too late.

Futhermore, Kurama now knew where the secret lay, within the only memory his fox self had broken up, would have withheld, if Kurama's curiosity hadn't retrieved it a second time. Beyond that wall of _youki_ and spirit energy.

Kurama's eyes closed, and as the hold on his demon energy slackened, the green life around him stretched upwards. A long green fern caressed his face, yet the mind of the fox had gone... reaching for a memory long hidden.

...

Blood roared in his ears as he dodged another set of mace and chains. Eyes snapping in rising fury, Youko lashed his whip around the chain swinging in the opposite way. With a great screech and long groan, it slammed into the wall, shaking small rocks loose from the top in a shower of dust and pebbles. Another burn mark adorned the wall. Kurama felt the anger from his former self fade as his smirk rose. Thus far, even the spirit user's trap was worthless when faced with his particular set of skills. Eyes narrowing, he prepared to finish it off completely.

A moment later, Kurama fell into Youko as the wall crumbled around them both. Rapid white face filled their eyes and buzzing echoed in their ears. Youko cursed. Kurama's eyes narrowed. Their attack had triggered a much more potent trap than the first, snaring them within their own minds - or perhaps a separate dimension than that of the wall. Youko's ears flicked forward as Kurama picked up the click of booted footsteps. He braced himself.

And braced himself.

Kurama blinked, standing upright. The footsteps continued. Tap-tap, tap-tap, tap-tap, tap, tap-tap, tap-tap, tap-tap, tap, tap-tap.

All around him.

Kurama started. The mist dissipated as the scenery around them faded back into being, the forest and the foot of the massive wall, back at the beginning. Youko had gone.

Automatically, Kurama walked forward, placing his hand on the nearby tree and glancing upwards. A moment passed.

"Impressive," he chuckled, "yet I'm afraid that it's not enough." He reached a hand out and pulled down a single red leaf. He twirled it in his fingers. "I know this is another illusion, and considering the makeup," he murmured aloud, continuing, "I'm still in a separate dimension." He tossed the leaf at the towering wall.

The leaf fell, slowly, winding its way to the ground, settling at last silently, and the wall blurred. Morphing downwards, as if water flowed over it, the image shifted. Another wall emerged in its place.

"Really," Kurama said, voice amused, "do you think I'd fall for the same landscape again?" His voice deepened. "If that's the extent of your power, you won't be able to contain me much longer."

The fox thief leapt backwards into the lowest branches of said tree. Standing upright, he withdrew his rose whip, uncurling it to rest against his knee. "Now, where is the imperfection this time?" He glanced around.

A couple minutes passed.

The whip cracked outwards and a black branch tumbled to the ground. The scene melted once again. Kurama stayed in place, whip still raised, as the same wall formed in front of him a third time.

"This could get tedious," he commented aloud, snaking his weapon around a sapling below, a single white blossom on its branches. "Too early for such flowers." He yanked, and yet again, the landscape fell away.

"Too short." A branch by his ear.

"Wrong shape." A square brick in the wall.

"Only one," He knocked a walking stick off the tree beside the other. "Besides they prefer solitude."

He caught a trailing feather. "A falcon's."

He closed his eyes. "There should be two branches, not three." He snapped the false limb in half.

Time passed.

...

Kurama would his whip around his shoulder, taking in the latest alteration yet not moving to correct it. _This isn't it,_ he mused to himself. _The changes are reoccurring but not falling apart. _He needed another way to break the enchantment's hold over him.

Calling back his _youki _and twirling the rose in his hand,Kurama closed his eyes once more, reaching out with his mind and his demon energy in a different sense, probing for differences in the fabric of power wrapped around him.

They were there, small cracks all around him, whispering, tempting him to rip through with sheer power; however, the fox saw them for what they really were. Triggers. Another clever net woven into the initial spell work should the first fail and the victim grow impatient.

Kurama chuckled, mildly impressed.

"I'm afraid I feel the need to repeat my earlier, interrupted statement," he murmured. The fox thief unfurled his whip once more. "I almost feel sorry that the creator for this dream had me to deal with their handiwork. It makes all their hard work feel," his voice lowered and deep pools of green narrowed, "utterly and completely ... weak." The last word echoed out, a firm steel note of superiority and a voice from another age overlapping it.

Green eyes changed to gold as Youko flung out his hands and returned to the dance of taking apart the illusions. One pass. Two, three. On the fourth pass, the limb dissolved on contact with the weapon. A slow smirk rose on his lips as the fox snapped the melting branch and leapt into midair, his crimson whip arching out like a rope-

...

And wrapping around a thick vine with large violet blossoms.

Dreamvine.

With his subtle call, a song too weak to be perceived as a threat to the net around him, the swift creepers had sealed the charred chain links in a painful embrace and reached further for him. Its demanding, deceptively sweet perfume banished the spirit spell with an overwhelming cocoon of warmth. Kurama smiled to himself. Natural death traps would always be more powerful than the imitations of mortal beings, no matter how long-lived they were. With a flare of _youki,_ he waved the fragrance away and looked upwards.

The tall wall had lost some height after being stripped of its protections. Before the top had been obscured by foliage, but now Kurama could see the truth of it, how the illusionist had altered the actual view of an old tree within and stretching above the wall to better guard his secret. A secret now unraveled and exposed to the thief. Youko's form appeared on the top near the pinnacle of a tower half-hidden by the reaching branches, turned to him, and faded from sight.

The next step was clear.

Sending his _youki _out in a gentle but firm breath of gratitude, Kurama left the vine's hold.

As he sped up the wall, snatches of the lullaby from before wrapped around him without the dangerous lure from before. Kurama smiled at its simplicity and kicked off the wall, spinning in midair and landing with a flourish on the top. Youko's triumph washed over his own and together they looked down.

In the middle of the courtyard, a maiden danced in a shallow pool, singing the lullaby. Icy blue ribbons of fabric arched overhead as she spun in a tight circle and leapt, tossing the wide scarf up high. The white skirt rippled, revealing bare feet, as she sang a new verse.

**The river is beyond the wall,**

**I cannot leave.**

**The town is over the forest.**

**I won't see it.**

**Here I will stay,**

**here in her arms,**

**the pieces of her heart.**

**I will stay**

**as long as the wind blows.**

Swirls of water cascaded from long unbound hair, flowing down her neck and bound chest, and too late Kurama realized his mistake.

Too late did dread slowly slide down his neck. Tranfixed, trapped, he listened, each phrase in the last verse striking faded memories, filling the spaces of his mind with their color. Yanking open doors long sealed. Emotions buried deep within his heart spilled over, threatening to tear him apart. He fell to his knees.

A rock tumbled out of his hands down the slope, hitting the nearby birdbath with an airy ring.

A basin layered in spirit energy into which the maiden had laid a pair of delicate bangles.

Her head rose. Their eyes met for all of a second.

Blue, dipped in pools of amethyst, bled deep, deep into the recesses of his thoughts. Dredging the last pieces up. Not demon, not of the spirit ruler's line either, forever locked in between. A child of the forbidden union.

The reason for the _Kekkai_'s construction.

A meeting.

His naïve promise.

And a name.

"Kaira."

Youko's golden eyes burned into him as his hold on the crucial memory failed.

* * *

><p><em>That's the end of the chapter and the end of that dream. I'm curious how many pick up hints of what's to come in this chapter and what they believe the details signify. I hope I dragged the tension out well in the end, too. Please review. <em>

_In the next chapter, we see more of Kuwabara, Yusuke, and wonder if something's changed in Kurama. It is heavily built on dialogue, which means it may get up sooner, but I won't promise. _

_Happy Holidays to everyone! _


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